This invention relates to mass and heat transfer facilities and specifically to vessels containing packing elements, either structured or dumped, within the vessel. Such packing generally rests upon a support plate at the bottom of a packed section. It is to such support plates that this invention specifically pertains.
The support plate is conventionally a unitary or parallel members of welded construction. The support plate must be capable of handling fluid flow through the vessel. In some cases there may be a single fluid passing in either direction while in other cases there may be countercurrent flow of gas and liquid streams through the vessel. If the flows in either direction predominate excessively, even for a short time, the support plate can become disturbed and its support function impaired. Thus it is important that it have the rigidity that comes from an integral structure rather than a series of interlocking members held together by gravitational forces.
The present invention provides a novel design for a support plate member from which a support plate can be fabricated without welding which has considerable ease of manufacture while also being easy to assemble and disassemble within the vessel. Support plates constructed using such members have great rigidity and resistance to displacement forces while in use.